SPRING DWINDLING. 371 



whicli is always accessible in her native regions. In Northern 

 latitudes, when confined to the hive, often for months together, 

 they can obtain the water they need only from the watery par- 

 ticles contained in the honey, the perspiration which condenses 

 on the colder parts of the hive, or the humidity of the air which 

 enters their hives. 



"In March and April, the rapidly-increasing amount of brood 

 causes an increased demand for water; and when the thermom- 

 eter is as low as 45 degrees, bees may be seen carrying it in at 

 noon, even on windy days, although many are sure to perish 

 from cold. In these months, in 1856, during a protracted period 

 of unfavorable weather we gave all our bees water, and they 

 remained at home in quiet, whilst those of other apiaries were 

 flying briskly in search of water. At the beginning of May, 

 our hives were crowded with bees; whilst the colonies of our 

 neighbors were mostly weak. 



"The consumption of water in March and April, in a popu- 

 lous colony, is very great, and in 1856, one hundred colonies 

 required eleven Berlin quarts per week, to keep on breeding 

 uninterruptedly. In Springs where the bees can fly safely 

 almost every day, the want of water will not be felt. 



"The loss of bees by water-dearth, is the result of climate, 

 and no form of hive, or mode of wintering, can furnish an ab- 

 solutely efficient security against it." — (Translated from the 

 German, by S. Wagner.) 



That bees cannot raise much brood without water, unless 

 they have fresh-gathered honey, has been known from the times 

 of Aristotle. Buera of Athens (Cotton, p. 104), aged 80 

 years, said in 1797: 



"Bees daily supply the worms with water; should the state 

 of the weather be such as to prevent the bees from fetching 

 water for a few days, the worms would perish. These dead bees 

 are removed out of the hive by the working-bees if they are 

 healthy and strong; otherwise, the stock perishes from their 

 putrid exhalations." 



In any movable-frame hives, water can be given to the 

 bees by pouring it into the empty cells of a comb. 



